Star Trek: Erin

Part 30: Do You Believe in Eden?

     Weightlessness is bad. On a spaceship, that means the gravity buffers aren't working, which causes plenty of problems if left unfixed. In space, you might be stranded until your oxygen runs out. On a planet, weightlessness means you're falling.

     We were falling.

     My heart, already in my throat, was joined by my stomach. I reached out for support. And found Gabriel. We gripped each other in that weightless moment. My gaze flicked to the hole in the turbolift wall, and I prepared to throw us out, right before the cables let out a shriek, held, and slowly began to heave us through the vine-nest.

     Flames—from my phaser-fire—danced around us, and I squeezed Gabriel once in an actual hug before releasing her. "That was neat."

     "Neat?'" Gabriel said incredulously. "That's all you have to say? We almost—"

     "But didn't." I grinned. "God, it feels good to be alive." I whipped out my communicator. "Owe you one, O'Sullivan. Over." Thumbed to the next channel. "Moving up, Tetra. We'll keep in touch with what we find. Out."

     O'Sullivan let out a heavy sigh. "I'm just glad this issue was resolved without a... mess."

     "Yeah, that'd be a real downer. Out." I turned back to Gabriel.

     She had her hands on her hips. "If you say 'neat' again, I'm slapping you."

     I threw back my head and laughed. My insides felt all jittery, but I knew it was just the adrenaline getting confused about why I wasn't closer to death. I rested my back against the turbolift wall and watched vines whip past the jagged hole. Looks like we're going to the satellite dish. Weird that a maintenance lift would be so directly placed, going through atriums and all that. Or it's a normal turbolift that is locked on moving between the bottom and top floors. I frowned. Someone would have to program it to do that though.

     The view darkened to grey as we passed through the satellite dish.

     Three things happened in quick succession. First, the turbolift slowed and stopped. Secondly, for the second time that day, intense light flooded the area. And third, the doors hissed open.

     Beyond those doors... was Eden.

     Each new glimpse was like a flashbulb behind my eyes. The skyward-facing satellite dish was a bowl brimming with greenery. Ground level had been just a taste of its true proliferation. The midnight flowers bloomed like colossal eyes, and I spotted ferns that would've been delicate if they weren't as thick as my leg. The human-sized bulbs attached to the pale plants were there too, although all in sight appeared to be rotting. Deep slashes were cut into their surfaces.

     In sharp contrast, the area around the turbolift looked like a military camp. Simple and effective shelter, supplies stored in neat crates, and flora more or less cleared from the area.

     More importantly, a human woman seemed to be waiting for us. Immediately I noticed the glint of metal in a holster at her hip. Not a phaser, but a gun. The flesh-tearing kind. I frowned. Besides the gun, she wore a mostly clean lab coat with the exception of green and red flecks on the cuffs, which I would call festive if the latter didn't look suspiciously like blood. I laid a hand on my phaser. "Are you a scientist here? I'm—"

     She made a tiny movement with her shoulders, and I felt cold metal jab me in the head. "I'll make this simple. What are you?" the woman in front of us said.

     "Starfleet," I said, matching her tone. "What were you expecting?" At the same time, my fingers brushed my phaser. Twist to the right, grab phaser, stun her. Easy. Or vaporize, considering she would use her move to shoot me with her very real gun. I tensed, maneuvering my shoulders as she considered my answer. Wait. Did I learn nothing from the Botany Bay? This time, we're the people intruding. Attacking without trying to negotiate. Using words only to create openings for a kill. I steadied my breathing. Give her one chance.